The present invention concerns a card of the smart card type, comprising a card body generally made of a plastic material, containing for example in a cavity provided for that purpose one or more integrated circuits with electrical contacts forming an intelligent module also called a chip.
The invention concerns more precisely, but in a non-limiting manner, mini-cards. Known smart cards have a standardised format: they have the shape of a rectangle approximately 8.5 cm long by approximately 5.4 cm wide. In certain applications, this format is not ideal. For example, in current portable telephones, the format mentioned above, despite its small size, is unusable.
Thus, in this type of application, smart cards with a format smaller than the format mentioned above, also referred to as mini-cards, are used. According to a well-known design, it is possible to simply convert the support card into a mini-card by detaching the latter from the support by breaking linking straps or bridges connecting the mini-card to its support, this breaking possibly being performed manually.
The method of manufacturing the support and the mini-card requires a machining step for cutting out the slot allowing detachment of the mini-card, or else, in the case of moulded cards, the use of a complex injection mould.
Furthermore, in many applications, the end user needs only the mini-card, and the support itself is not used.
Current cards are manufactured by pressing or moulding using materials such as PVC (polyvinyl chloride), PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene). These materials are relatively expensive and constitute practically 95% by weight of the mini-card/support assembly. Consequently, there is considerable waste in the current design of mini-cards.
Moreover, the material constituting the support is a plastic material which is non-biodegradable and therefore harmful to the environment.